Well, here we are in Hong Kong, one of our favorite places to visit. The weather was dreadful-looking outside with overcast skies and a heavy haze that sure looked like smog. It was not cold, however. The temperature was close to 70 this morning. It might not be the best day for those going to Victoria Peak on Hong Kong Island. At least it was not raining.
During breakfast, we watched outside the Pinnacle Grill window while a large truck pulled up with two dragons. Dragons….you say? Of course they were the Dragon and Lion Dance and Drum Show performing for all of us. It took them all of 45 minutes to assemble the dragons and "man" the bodies. The drummers were the best. If anyone thought they could sleep in after 8:30am on the portside, they would be quite surprised how far those drums sounds can travel.
We went back to our veranda to watch, but were mostly blocked by an extra gangway. Towards the end of the 15 minute show, one of the dragons broke loose and came our way waving at us and others, as well as our room steward Putu who was washing veranda windows at the time. Pretty good we thought. And we did get some neat pictures.
Here's a snippet of info about Hong Kong. The population is 7.18 million folks that speak mostly Cantonese and English. Situated on several islands and part of the mainland, it is connected by ferries, trams, an underground metro, buses and cars. It boasts that they have the world's smoothest transport systems. It is also considered one of the world's top culinary capitals where they worship the "God of Cookery" with Cantonese, Sichuanese, Japanese, and French cuisine according to Lonely Planet. Their favorite food is dim sum, pork buns, teahouses and late night snacks.
There are too many sights to mention but if you booked a HAL tour (as we have many times) you would see the best of Hong Kong for 8 ¼ hours for $220. Or there are shorter tours like East meets West for 3 hours and $220. The Kowloon Market is a winner at $55 for 4 ½ hours while a trip to Lantau Island to see the worlds biggest Buddha was $240 and 7 ½ hours. Taking the Lantau Skyrail was an option for $130 for 4 hours, but we were informed that it was shut down due to maintenance today. Lastly, an evening harbor cruise was 2 ¾ hours for $140. We have done them all over the years.
There was some confusion with the complimentary shuttle offered today, as well as a last minute offer of a $10 USD bus to take folks to the Star Ferry Terminal area. On all of the past world's cruises when we stopped here, we docked in the Star Ferry terminal. Not any more. Even before Covid and 2020, we were moved to the Kai Tak Terminal (former airport). It is not conveniently located to the major attractions.
The last time we were here, we were taken to the Peninsula Hotel by the shuttle, which worked out fine. Yes it was an inconvenience, but we were put in an area we all knew well. Now we were transferred to the APM Mall, supposedly one of the largest in Hong Kong. However it is miles from the sights we wish to visit. Complicating the matter even more, there was another shuttle costing $10 USD one way to the Star Ferry Terminal area. It was more direct, but it was a one- way trip only. The only way back to the cruise terminal was by taxi or the MTR (mass transit) to the mall. So that was not a good deal.
The only good thing about the free shuttle was that it dropped you off close to the MTR Kwun Tong station, and if we could figure it out, we could make our way to the top of Nathan Road several miles away from the Mall. Once the free bus (made for tiny people) filled up, it took no more than 15 minutes to get to the mall. And we need to mention here that HAL did not pay for this shuttle, as it was tied to the mall. It runs all of the time for anyone who wished to use it.
We had missed a few details before coming to the mall on the first bus. One was not getting an MTR map and the other was failing to get some Hong Kong dollars. Normally, we would be able to purchase HK dollars on the ship, but with a few exceptions, they do not do that anymore at the front desk. In addition, we had been told that the metro accepts Visa as a payment method. We watched some guests from the ship try tapping their cards to gain entrance to the trains, and it would not work. Asking at the customer service desk, we were told it was Hong Kong cash only for short trips. And it was a different type of Visa card that works here.
The mall was big, very nice, and modern. But to tell the truth we have been in so many of these, we wanted to get outside and explore. Somehow we found our way to the MTR and ran into friends Mike and Nancy who were trying to do the same thing as us. Since we did not have any local money, we went in search of a money exchange shop. There was nothing in the entire mall except ATMs and banks….none of which exchange foreign money.
So we went outside and around the block, down some alleys, and found a side street with an exchange place. Now the fun was trying to remember how to get back into the mall or find the access to the metro. No matter which direction we walked, it was like salmon swimming upstream. Back inside, we bought our tickets for a total of $20 HK ($2.56 USD). This would get us to the top of Nathan Road at the Prince Edward Street. By the way, everything was crowded because today was Saturday. Many families were out and about as well as lots of school age kids. They filled the trains, the streets, and the stores.
If we thought the trains were crowded, our destinations of the Mong Kok Flower Market, the Bird Market, and the Ladies Market were wall-to-wall shoppers. We were actually surprised to see the old bird market still in operation, because when we got off of the ship, we were handed a warning to watch out for avian influenza. It stated that human infection with the virus can result in respiratory failure, multi-organ failure or death. We believe this is directed more to poultry ranches, and not the pet store-type bird market. Now we wondered why so many of the locals were wearing masks. Covid may still be around as well as the bird flu. In the meantime we always pack the Purell and use it often.
The flower market here is two blocks long, and filled with the most perfect blooming bouquets and live plants too. The orchids had to be the prettiest and came in all shades including blue-tinged with dye we assume. It is not uncommon to see locals with armfuls of single-cut flowers and heading for the MTR. From what we saw, they were not terribly expensive. The Bird Market was not as crowded this morning. A huge stadium has been built alongside this old market, and we were lucky to find it. Many local bird owners will bring their pet birds in small cages to listen all day to other singing birds. In time, their pets will learn to sing. And it is obviously a good place for the elderly folks to visit with each other. Varieties of birds sold here were parakeets, parrots, macaws, mynah, finches, canaries, love birds, cockatiels, and all types of little song birds from the wild. Their eating habits drop a lot of seed on the ground, so that attracted dozens of pigeons. They do keep the place clean, but then add some of their own deposits as well. These roaming birds might be responsible for transferring viruses and there is no good way to keep them out of the open-air market.
The Ladies Market went on for block after block and had about everything imaginable for everyone. It was most busy, especially where the fresh produce was being sold. A weekend is probably not the best time for a cruise ship to stop in Hong Kong. Time was getting away from us, so we continued onward to another MTR station on Nathan Road. Buying return tickets, we were back to the mall in a short time. Even though there were a lot of people on the trains, it really is the most convenient way to get around. There were some young girls who insisted we sit down when there were no seats left. It was sweet of them to do that.
Today's shuttle ran from 10am to 6pm, but we would never wait until the last buses to go back. We walked back inside the Mall and found a nice place for lunch. They had a varied menu which happened to include pizza. So guess what we had? A salami-topped cheese pizza with a side salad and Coke Zeros. It was really good. Then it was time to go.
What was not good was by the time we got to the shuttle, it filled up mostly with crew members. We understand that the crew has limited time off in these ports, but normally, they will insist on guests going first on the bus. That did not happen today. Not a big deal, we were first in line for the next bus which should have come in 30 minutes. Well, it did not arrive until an hour later. In the meantime, we watched several arrogant older ladies cutting into the line by talking to some people from the ship, then slipping in behind them. They should know better, but they get away with it until someone speaks up. Other folks did speak up, but only a few listened. That should be something one learns in kindergarten, but some people are clueless or simply do not care.
At least this bus was larger and the seats worked better. We studied the route back and wondered if we could have walked back easier. The distance was not that far, but due to a massive amount of construction happening, there was no clear path to take. And with all aboard tomorrow at 3pm, we are not sure we will attempt to go back to the Mall. Sure would have been nice to make it to the Night Market like we always do. The Temple Street Night Market will start up around 4pm, even if all of the dining venues are not operating yet. It's fun just to see the vast variety of souvenirs and treasures that are being hawked. We would have liked to walk on the Avenue of the Stars at the original terminal. We always make a sweep through Kowloon Park, but we would need more than a half of a day to do it all.
The hike back through the terminal took us on a zig-zag journey from the garage level to the second floor and down again. We had our passport copies checked before we were made to go through the xray. Eventually, we were back onboard. Thank goodness. We spent the rest of the late afternoon working in the room.
Dinner time had some good choices with a seafood croquette and an orange avocado salad with no lettuce. We do hope that some food was delivered here today as we have been running out of fresh stuff. Our entrees were one chicken meatball plate with rigatoni and marinara sauce. The other main was a Shepard's pie, made with ground lamb, peas, gravy and baked mashed potatoes piped on top. It was quite good and hot as ever. Since they were out of fresh bananas, we skipped dessert.
There was a local show performed by a local folkloric group at 9:30pm, but we have seen similar performances and decided to skip it and head up to deck 10 to take some photos of the famous skyline of the harbor. Too bad the smog/fog was so thick, we could barely see all of the lit-up buildings.
One more short day here tomorrow, and we will be on our way towards Vietnam.
Bill & Mary Ann
